Feels Like Home
by Amida-Lynn Meixiang
Summary: One rainy afternoon, After everything has ended, Yuugi Mutou and Ryou Bakura see each other in a different light. YuugiRyou


**Feels Like Home **

**Disclaimers: **We all know **Yu-Gi-Oh **isn't mine. That's why it's called _**fanfiction. **_It's fiction written by fans of something canon, so... yeah. Characters are all owned by **Kazuki Takahashi**. And for that we thank him.

**Author's Notes: **Takes place after the series - as I heard that everyone went back to being normal and without other selves at the end. I decided to use that timeline as it's really hard to pull of fluff fic with Bakura hovering around Ryou - or maybe it's just me ;; -- anyway, this is a Yuugi/Ryou romance **one-shot**. So, if you don't like the pairing - you can always press the back button - don't tell me how sick and wrong I am for writing about this pair after I've put warnings of what pairings there are in this story. But that note was for the flamers, as for the rest of humanity who have questions, comments, reviews and suggestions. Please do e-mail me quickly so I can change whatever it is I need to.

And for some reason, the dividers won't work in the editing option after you upload the story - I apologize.

**Feels Like Home**

**Written by Genjo-Fujimiya-Houshi**

Yuugi Mutou stands under a shed, waiting for the pouring rain to stop. He sighs and looks up; it's even stronger than it first started out. It means that he'll be staying a little while longer. It didn't look like it was going to rain earlier; the sun was shining brightly this morning, which is why he didn't find the need to bring one. It was around the afternoon that the clouds and the skies suddenly went dark. The moment he heard the thunder roaring softly, he knew that he was in trouble. He was on his way out to meet the others when the rain started coming down heavily. He had no choice but to find the nearest shelter. Luckily enough, he stumbled onto the shed near the school campus. There was no one there – so he sat alone, waiting for the others to come along.

Yuugi takes a deep breath, his brows creasing worriedly. He hopes that the others haven't been waiting long – they might be starting to worry. If he knows them, Jounouchi would offer to run through the rain to go find him. The last thing Yuugi wants is to get his best friend soaked and sick because of running through this downpour. He shakes his head and his hands fumble with the millennium puzzle attached to the chain he wore around his neck. Yes, he is alone – his other self won't be coming anytime soon for he's returned to where he belongs. Sometimes, it gets extremely lonely without anyone to talk to. Yuugi admits that he and Atemu became close. They went through a lot, so it was expected. But he also knows that it's better for him to go back – into becoming a memory. Everything that happened were all just memories of the past, things he remembered fondly – he wouldn't have changed anything. He is now happy where he is, and he hopes that his other self is, as well. They were both living peacefully, so he supposes that there's no longer anything to worry about.

He continues to wait, looking ahead – he expects Jounouchi to come running, yelling to him from a distance – telling him to hurry up so they can make a run for it instead. He smiles to himself, and looks up at the skies. Even though they weren't as bright as they were earlier, there was something beautiful about them – something very calming. Yuugi notices how the rain makes everything look sad. It was dark, but not too dark – everything was just in shades of gray. There was still enough light for you to see things in a differently. Perhaps it was the mysterious and melancholy air that made it beautiful. Though he knows that being sad or lonely is never really good – he finds this kind of atmosphere to be relaxing at times.

He looks up as he hears footsteps, he expects it to be Jounouchi – but he wasn't running. Yuugi blinks once and looks in front of him, passing by was a familiar young boy. Silver-white hair looked a bit glossy against the dim light that surrounded them. His eyes met with soft and gentle dark brown ones. Ryou Bakura was standing a few steps away from him, with a dark blue umbrella sheltering him from the downpour. He smiles gently at the shorter boy, offering a hand.

"Yuugi-kun." He trails off politely. "This umbrella is big enough for two people to share." He nods, still smiling. "Come on."

Yuugi smiles brightly, he's happy and relieved that Ryou came along. Now they can go look for Jounouchi, Anzu and Honda. He gets up from the bench and nods. "Thank you, Bakura-kun. It's a good thing you came along; otherwise, I'd still be stuck here."

Ryou laughs softly – Yuugi looks up at him. Ryou's laughter, the sound of his voice. He sounds happier now. Even his smile was peaceful. This made him happy; he was finally free from the torment and control his other self had put him through. Now he can be just as he wants and he can do just as he pleases. Yuugi walks beside him; they start to walk away from the shed.

"Were you waiting for the others?" Ryou asks.

"Yeah, I was supposed to meet them – But then the rain started pouring." Yuugi pauses thoughtfully. "I guess they're stuck somewhere, too – it's just that it didn't look like it was going to rain earlier." He laughs sheepishly and looks at Ryou again. "You're lucky you have an umbrella."

"It's good to be prepared." Ryou just says in a quiet manner with a small smile.

"Bakura-kun – My friends and I were going to get something to eat and then head over to my house, maybe you'd like to join us?" Since his other self left him, he had the time to do whatever he pleased without worrying he'd hurt anyone. Yuugi is confident he would say yes.

"Of course. That would be nice." Ryou replied politely. "Thank you."

Yuugi nods and looks ahead, the rain only pours harder. He glances at Ryou again from the corner of his eye. Yes, he did seem much better now. He was a little more open than he was before, but still – he managed to keep to himself. Still very reserved and polite, he was still quiet. Yuugi and his other friends liked and welcomed his company. He'd become a part of their group after everything ended, they invited him to join them. Ryou, though he seemed very shy about it – actually accepted the invitation. Yuugi is glad he did, they would stay his friends because they promised him they would.

It's been about a few months since Ryou stayed with them more. Though Jounouchi and Yuugi were undoubtedly best friends, Ryou has grown close with Yuugi. Not that he ignored the fact that Anzu, Jou and Honda treated him in the friendliest way possible. But it was Yuugi who got him to open up often. By this time, Yuugi knows more things about Ryou more than the others did. Maybe it was the fact that he never presses or forces him to say anything or do anything he doesn't want. He doesn't push for him to loosen up immediately. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Yuugi waits patiently for him to do that by himself and is always supportive when he does. Everyone encourages him – but it is Yuugi's presence that made him feel at best – mostly the one that makes him feel at home, that this is the place where he belongs. Sometimes, Ryou finds himself telling Yuugi things that he's never told anyone before. It surprises him, but Yuugi never betrays the trust given to him. This makes Ryou admire Yuugi even more, he really is a good friend.

In return, Yuugi finds himself admiring Ryou. Ryou is one of the strongest people he knows, though he is frail and is easily physically hurt – Yuugi sees a different kind of visible strength. He knows that his other self might've treated him badly, throwing at him every single kind of abuse he could. But still, Ryou lived through everything – perhaps it was the hope that one day, his darker side would leave him. He even had, once helped them; even though he knew he would get into trouble doing so. Yuugi is sometimes horrified, trying to think about the pain Ryou must've gone through in dealing with the other self he had. But still, he was there with them now – he did not give up. This is enough to tell him how strong Ryou really is, though it may not seem that way. Yuugi sees a certain kind of quiet grace in the way Ryou carries himself. It's not the kind of manner or a kind of heir he or any of his other friends have. Maybe that's why he fit in so well – he was the missing piece that their group always needed.

They exchange glances for a brief moment. Yuugi just laughs sheepishly again – Ryou just gently smiles back. This is enough to make them happy and content.

Just then, the rain pours even harder, Yuugi looks up – the umbrella won't be any good if the rain pours even stronger. He looks at Ryou who stops walking and who is probably thinking the same thing. They look at each other once more, falling quiet for a moment before Yuugi grabs his hand and nods.

"We have to make a run for it, Bakura-kun. Maybe we'll have better chances of staying dry if we do." He said.

Ryou just nods and they both begin to run – the faster they move, the harder the rain pours. Soon, everything is blurry and it's very hard to see where they are or where they're headed. Yuugi clutches on Ryou's hand even tighter, looking around – trying to figure out if they were about to bump into something. But as he continues to look ahead, he steps the wrong way. He cries out in surprise as his eyes widen and he falls to the ground. He hasn't let go of Ryou's hand, therefore dragging the taller boy with him. Ryou also lets out a short, surprised cry as they both hit the ground at the same time – he lets go of the umbrella as he does.

A few moments pass – Yuugi sits up, he winces and he looks down at himself – he is now soaked. He gasps and then turns to his left as he hears Ryou moan a bit, recovering from their fall. He is unaware of how close they are now, instead – he kneels by his side.

"Bakura-kun, are you okay?" He asks with concern.

Ryou looks at himself, he is soaked to the bone – slowly he turns to his left and sees Yuugi. He pauses and then smiles a bit – nodding, Yuugi looks at him – he didn't notice himself blush, he was too busy trying to see if Ryou was badly hurt from the fall. After all, it was pretty hard.

"Yes. I'm alright." Ryou answers – there's no use using the umbrella now – they're both soaking wet – it was still hard to see around them. He feels his heart skip a beat, without warning, he throws his arms around the shorter, smaller boy. Yuugi almost stumbles, but he is strong enough to keep his balance. He is too surprised – he stays there, tense and not knowing what to say. He blinks twice, trying to see if this was truly happening or if he were imagining things. But soon, he eases in – the embrace was warm. This was the most peaceful he'd ever been. He closes his eyes and smiles – his arms wrap around Ryou in return.

Yuugi pulls away slightly and presses his lips on Ryou's own. Ryou is a bit surprised, but he does not open his eyes – he leans in and inches even closer, responding lightly – the kiss was intense, but still, it remained innocent. As Ryou pulls away, he stays in the embrace. His eyes are half open, as he rests his head on Yuugi's shoulder. Yuugi just smiles, his hand shakily and hesitantly stroking his white-silver hair. There could be no more words, for that in itself said enough.

The rain has now become a drizzle. Soft gray lights pouring over them from above. They knew if they stayed in the rain anymore – one or both of them would get sick. But none of them dared to leave. Neither of them wanted to let go. They were even more content then they can ever become at that very spot where they were.

OWARI

If you got any comments or suggestions - e-mail me! Thanks in advance for those who read!


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